5.0 out of 5 stars
Serial Killer in New York, October 14, 2011
By Frederick Lee Brooke
I was intrigued by the idea of reading a book about a serial killer set in 1979 in New York. Remember the real-life terror of Son of Sam, day after day, till they caught him? And the book “Even Trade” doesn’t disappoint. We enter the world of 19-year-old Nina Esposito, a woman who has grown up in bars, who works as a bartender and who meets her friends after work in other bars.
The book opens with Nina discovering a body on her way to acting class. The discovery is even more unsettling when it becomes clear there is a killer who seems to be targeting young actresses from her acting school. Targeting young actresses of Italian descent with long dark hair who look just like her.
As a reader you are way ahead of Nina through much of the book. Due to the early deaths of her parents and then the grandmother who cared for her as a teenager, Nina is mature beyond her years, but she is young and naive enough to wantonly ignore the danger around her. We meet all Nina’s men–friends and acquaintances, from her acting teacher to her best movie-going buddy. They are all older than Nina, and they all want something from her. What they all want is more or less the same. She yearns for a real connection with one of them, but she’s not finding it.
In 1979 there was tension in Iran, there was music from Led Zeppelin, Prince, Earth Wind and Fire and the Stones. Song lyrics comfort Nina when the fear grows intense. People skated in roller rinks, and didn’t have cell phones, and maybe they looked out for each other more. There is a real neighborhood feel about the points on Nina’s local compass: the bars where she works and hangs out, her apartment, her acting school, the roller rink. Terrifying scenes from her past are weaved deftly into the story to resonate in her duel of wits with the unknown killer.
The ending was totally surprising, and highly satisfying. I was left wishing I could spend more time with Nina Esposito, like all those other men in her life, but the story was over.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
A love letter to a lost New York, April 13, 2011
By Madfoot (San Francisco, CA)
Sure, this is a fast-moving murder mystery that keeps you guessing till the last page, but it’s also a portrait of a different Gilded Age in New York’s history — a time when people unironically laced up their roller-skates and discoed around while giving each other suggestive glances. The author’s love for her home, and deep knowledge of the way it can be a young woman’s best friend (or worst enemy, depending on her mood and proximity to a possible serial killer), is obvious on every page. I felt for the main character, fell for every red herring, and in the end didn’t see it coming, even though I thought I had it all figured out. What a great page-turner — er, page-clicker. (Page-swiper? I read it on my iPhone.) Thumbs up!
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5.0 out of 5 stars
A Very Cool Debut, March 24, 2011
By D.B. Gilles (New York City)
Through the eyes and entertaining voice of 19-year-old Nina Esposito, this mystery/coming of age story takes you back to New York City circa 1979 when there were no cell phones, Internet, cable, Twitter and all the other trappings of present day life. Author Rosanne Limoncelli does a great job of setting the mood and tone of Greenwich Village and the way life was for a complicated young woman trying to make it as an actress in the big city. Obsessed with death and father figures, Nina finds herself in the middle of a series of murders that are uncomfortably too close to home. Nice twists and turns and an ending you won’t guess.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Summer Murder Mystery, May 1, 2011
By S. Artis (USA)
I just finished reading this great murder mystery. The author did an amazing job of taking me to the summer of 1979 in New York City, when NYC was a whole different world. I can feel, smell and taste the streets of Greenwich Village as I go through the hot humid days with Nina Esposito.
This thriller kept me involve in the main character’s past and present. Nina revealed glimpses of her childhood and let me understand her unusual maturity at just 19 years old. Nina Esposito is her own best friend and worse enemy. The story kept me guessing on whom the real serial killer is. Just when I thought I knew, the story took me to a whole different place. It’s a quick, fast moving summer read!!!!! I had the book on my iPhone kindle, it made reading really easy.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Engaging psychological thriller, August 16, 2011
By Bellagirl
This book was a quick and intriguing page-turner. The author did a great job of capturing the time and working-class setting of late 1970s New York, a gritty hotbed of corruption and sleaze where murders go unsolved.
Like some of the other reviewers have already pointed out, every scene was realistically-portrayed and drew me deeper into the story.
But what struck me foremost about this book is how fully fleshed-out its protagonist Nina is. She is young, full of street smarts, but much more vulnerable than she thinks she is. Her past is skillfully intertwined with the murder mystery playing out in present day. Going into this, I didn’t know what to expect but was pleasantly surprised. At its heart, Even Trade is both a murder mystery and a character study, which makes the plot that much more engaging. It’s a story that makes you think. And definitely worth a read.
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